Scottish Executive

Advocacy

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the Advocacy Safeguards Agency was established; what the total (a) cost of setting up the agency was and (b) running costs to date have been; what the remit of the agency is, and where the agency is based.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Advocacy Safeguards Agency was established on 1 April 2002. The total budget for the agency for 2002-03 is £358,700. The cost of setting up the agency to 31 August is £7,169; the running costs up to 31 August are £63,992. The remit of the agency is divided into five core functions: developing support for commissioners; evaluation; policy development and implementation; research, and complaints and mediation. The agency is currently based in the offices of Scottish Human Services Trust in Edinburgh and is in the process of securing its own distinct, accessible premises.

Autism

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost to the NHS would be of providing the blood test, TaqMan PCR, to every autistic child.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Public Health Institute of Scotland’s Needs Assessment Report on Autistic Spectrum Disorders (2001) estimated that, in Scotland, there are 2,114 autistic children under 19 years of age, and a further 5,600 with other autistic spectrum disorders.

  Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a technique which amplifies minute quantities of DNA in the blood and makes testing for it easier. Each test costs a minimum of £150.

Autism

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will fund the blood test, TaqMan PCR, for every autistic child in order to detect and identify sections of the measles virus gene and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

Malcolm Chisholm: There are no plans to test the blood of every autistic child in Scotland for the measles virus because, using validated methodologies, it would only be detectable in the acute viraemic stage of the illness.

Child Care

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made in considering the report by the Scottish Recruitment and Selection Consortium, Safer Recruitment and Selection for Staff Working in Child Care - A Tool Kit .

Cathy Jamieson: Extensive consultation on the report has taken place, including a number of consultation seminars. Analysis of the responses to the consultation will be completed in October.

Child Care

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when the proposals for implementation of the recommendations in the report by the Scottish Recruitment and Selection Consortium , Safer Recruitment and Selection for Staff Working in Child Care - A Tool Kit , will be made publicly available.

Cathy Jamieson: Proposals for implementation of the recommendations will be guided by the consultation responses. We anticipate the proposals will be made available early in the New Year.

Children and Young People

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how substance misuse projects established with support from the Children's Change Fund will be funded after 2004.

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans are being made to ensure that the core services provided by substance misuse programmes for children and young people will continue to be provided when short-term project funding expires.

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether levels of funding for substance misuse projects for children and young people will be maintained at present levels, increased or decreased in the next three years.

Cathy Jamieson: New resources, additional to those already in departmental baselines, amounting to £4.3 million in 2004-05, £17.8 million in 2005-06 and £19.3 million in 2006-07, will be available from the spending review to support integrated services for children. Most of this money will be routed through the Changing Childrens' Services Fund, which will continue to support substance misuse activities.

  Decisions are still to be taken, within the wider context of the spending review, on the future funding of generic substance misuse programmes across the Executive, which also incorporate services for children and young people.

Citizens Advice Bureaux

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether law centres should work in close association with other agencies such as Citizens Advice Bureaux and Credit Unions.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Executive wants to see a joined-up, user-friendly and quality-assured network of legal information and advice for the people of Scotland. That is the ultimate objective behind the programme of work I announced back on 22 May. In that context, it will be important for all organisations involved in providing advice to work together co-operatively, in the interests of their clients, many of whom are among our most vulnerable people, and in particular for strong and effective referral networks to be established.

Community Safety

Miss Annabel Goldie (West of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how it monitors the distribution of money within local authorities which has been allocated to Community Safety Partnerships and how these schemes are evaluated.

Dr Richard Simpson: The Community Safety Partnership Award Programme introduced from 1 April 2002 is made up of two elements, a formulated award and a variable award. The formulated award is based on population and crime levels whilst the variable award is allocated following an assessment of the individual action plan and strategy. The action plan sets out the local authority led Community Safety Partnership's priorities for the forthcoming year. One condition of the award is that the Chief Executive of the relevant local authority agrees to ensure that the monies received are for the purposes specified in the action plan. A progress report signed by the Chief Executive is provided mid-year and a further progress report will accompany the application for funding for the following year. Audited accounts are required within four months of the end of the financial year.

  Evaluation of individual schemes/projects funded by the Community Safety Partnership is a matter for the individual partnership. However, it is proposed to evaluate the new arrangements for funding community safety partnerships and to include a review of the effectiveness of CCTV and other community safety initiatives funded by the Executive under the Make Our Communities Safer Challenge Competition, which the Community Safety Partnership Award Programme supersedes.

Dental Health

Cathy Peattie (Falkirk East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it plans to publish the consultation on children's oral health promised in Our National Health: A plan for action, a plan for change .

Malcolm Chisholm: The consultation document Towards Better Oral Health in Children is published today. It seeks views on a range of measures which might be taken to improve oral health among children in Scotland. Copies have been placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre. Responses are invited by 31 December 2002.

Digital Technology

Colin Campbell (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to emulate the joint government/BT ACT NOW project to bring ADSL to 12 exchanges in Cornwall and, if so, what exchanges in Scotland would be identified first for such a project.

Iain Gray: Highlands and Islands Enterprise have looked with interest at the Cornwall project and are discussing it with the telecoms industry. They are also supporting BT’s trial of community broadband through mini-ADSL.

  However, ADSL is not the only solution for providing broadband. Our broadband strategy acknowledges this by being technology and supplier neutral. Nevertheless, the Scottish Executive does, of course, recognise the benefits of public/private collaboration for promoting broadband and we are, for instance, adopting this approach in the implementation of the Scottish programme of projects under the UK broadband fund.

Drug Misuse

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the £100 million it announced in September 2000 to tackle illicit drug misuse remains unallocated and when it will announce the disbursement of the remaining monies.

Dr Richard Simpson: All of the £100 million expenditure package has been allocated on the basis of a three-year programme, to remove uncertainties about funding at local level and encourage sustained activity. The following table gives a breakdown of the allocations:

  


Area of spend 
  

2001-02
(£ million) 
  

2002-03
(£ million) 
  

2003-04
(£ million) 
  

Totals
(£ million) 
  



 Treatment 
  

2.0 
  

4.0 
  

4.0 
  

10 
  



 Rehabilitation 
  

6.8 
  

6.8 
  

6.8 
  

20.4 
  



 Training 
  

0.2 
  

0.2 
  

0.2 
  

0.6 
  



 Prisons 
  

2.0 
  

4.0 
  

4.0 
  

10 
  



 Training and Employment Bridges 
  

1.5 
  

2.5 
  

2.5 
  

6.5 
  



 Community Disposals 
  

2.0 
  

3.5 
  

4.0 
  

9.5 
  



 Young people and families 
  

4.0 
  

6.0 
  

8.0 
  

18 
  



 Schools Education 
  

1.0 
  

1.0 
  

1.0 
  

3.0 
  



 Youth Crime 
  

0.0 
  

0.5 
  

0.5 
  

1.0 
  



 Public awareness initiatives 
  

2.1 
  

2.1 
  

2.1 
  

6.3 
  



 Scotland Against Drugs 
  

1.5 
  

1.5 
  

1.5 
  

4.5 
  



 Social Inclusion Partnerships 
  

- 
  

2.0 
  

3.0 
  

5.0 
  



 Research 
  

0.666 
  

0.666 
  

0.666 
  

1.998 
  



Local structures, good practice and evaluation 
  

0.6 
  

0.6 
  

0.6 
  

1.8 
  



Management information and systems 
  

0.5 
  

0.5 
  

0.5 
  

1.5 
  



Total 
  

24.866 
  

35.866 
  

39.366 
  

100.098

Drug Misuse

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the £100 million it announced in September 2000 to tackle illicit drug misuse has been allocated to each (a) local authority and (b) NHS board, also on a per capita basis.

Dr Richard Simpson: Additional funding from Spending Review 2000 for drug rehabilitation services, included in local authorities’ Grant Aided Expenditure (GAE) for the years 2001-02 to 2003-04 is outlined in Table 1. The funding is distributed in line with overall GAE expenditure, on a per capita basis.

  Additional funding for work with young people and families, allocated to local authorities through the Changing Children’s Services Fund for the period 2001-02 to 2003-04 is outlined in Table 2.

  Local authorities are also benefiting from significant additional resources for other drug-related initiatives such as training and employment, community disposals, schools education and community safety, all funded from the £100 million.

  I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-25154 on 1 May 2002 for additional allocations to each NHS board for drug treatment services. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

  Table 1

  


Local Authority 
  

Population 
  

Per Annum 2001-02 to 2003-04
Additional Funding for Drug Rehabilitation 
  Services
(£000) 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

212,650 
  

282 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

227,440 
  

302 
  



Angus 
  

109,840 
  

146 
  



Argyll and Bute 
  

89,730 
  

119 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

48,530 
  

65 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

146,800 
  

195 
  



Dundee City 
  

144,430 
  

192 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

120,940 
  

161 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

110,690 
  

147 
  



East Lothian 
  

90,430 
  

120 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

89,280 
  

119 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

451,710 
  

600 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

27,560 
  

37 
  



Falkirk 
  

144,370 
  

192 
  



Fife 
  

349,200 
  

464 
  



Glasgow City 
  

611,440 
  

812 
  



Highland 
  

208,600 
  

277 
  



Inverclyde 
  

85,190 
  

113 
  



Midlothian 
  

81,680 
  

108 
  



Moray 
  

85,210 
  

113 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

139,410 
  

185 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

327,940 
  

436 
  



Orkney 
  

19,600 
  

26 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

134,030 
  

178 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

177,230 
  

235 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

106,400 
  

141 
  



Shetland 
  

22,740 
  

30 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

114,250 
  

152 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

307,520 
  

408 
  



Stirling 
  

84,700 
  

113 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

94,980 
  

126 
  



West Lothian 
  

154,680 
  

205 
  



Scotland 
  

5,119,200 
  

6,800 
  



  Table 2

  Funding from SR 2000 for Work With Young People and Families

  


Local Authority 
  

2001-02
Allocation
(£000) 
  

2002-03
Allocation
(£000) 
  

2003-04
Allocation
(£000) 
  

Total
Allocation
Over 3-year period
(£000) 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

111 
  

168 
  

225 
  

504 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

123 
  

185 
  

247 
  

555 
  



Angus 
  

66 
  

100 
  

133 
  

299 
  



Argyll and Bute 
  

57 
  

86 
  

115 
  

259 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

42 
  

64 
  

85 
  

192 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

101 
  

153 
  

204 
  

458 
  



Dundee City 
  

162 
  

245 
  

328 
  

736 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

113 
  

170 
  

228 
  

510 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

35 
  

52 
  

70 
  

157 
  



East Lothian 
  

50 
  

75 
  

101 
  

225 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

31 
  

46 
  

62 
  

139 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

268 
  

406 
  

544 
  

1,219 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

30 
  

30 
  

30 
  

90 
  



Falkirk 
  

90 
  

137 
  

183 
  

410 
  



Fife 
  

223 
  

338 
  

452 
  

1,013 
  



Glasgow City 
  

861 
  

1,301 
  

1,742 
  

3,904 
  



Highland 
  

153 
  

231 
  

309 
  

692 
  



Inverclyde 
  

83 
  

125 
  

167 
  

375 
  



Midlothian 
  

48 
  

73 
  

98 
  

218 
  



Moray 
  

47 
  

71 
  

95 
  

213 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

140 
  

211 
  

283 
  

634 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

293 
  

442 
  

592 
  

1326 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

30 
  

30 
  

30 
  

90 
  



Perth and Kinross 
  

76 
  

114 
  

153 
  

342 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

152 
  

229 
  

307 
  

688 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

61 
  

91 
  

122 
  

274 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

30 
  

30 
  

30 
  

90 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

64 
  

97 
  

130 
  

292 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

196 
  

296 
  

397 
  

889 
  



Stirling 
  

52 
  

78 
  

104 
  

234 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

113 
  

170 
  

228 
  

510 
  



West Lothian 
  

102 
  

154 
  

206 
  

461 
  



Scotland 
  

4,000 
  

6,000 
  

8,000 
  

18,000

Drug Misuse

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27619 by Mrs Mary Mulligan on 12 August 2002, what (a) increased sum in drug treatment resources and (b) resources through the Changing Children’s Services Fund for work with young people and families affected by drug misuse was or will be allocated to each Drug Action Team area in (i) 2001-02, (ii) 2002-03 and (iii) 2003-04.

Dr Richard Simpson: Resources for drug treatment are allocated to NHS boards. I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-25154 on 1 May 2002, which details total and per capita allocations to NHS boards from 1998-99 to 2002-03. Funding for 2003-04 will remain the same as 2002-03.

  I also refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-28682 today, which details allocations to local authorities from the Changing Children’s Services Fund for the period 2001-02 to 2003-04. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Eating Disorders

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what average length of time anorexia nervosa sufferers in the Grampian NHS Board area have to wait to see a specialist and what plans it has to reduce these waiting times.

Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not available centrally.

  People suffering from anorexia nervosa are treated and supported through mainstream mental health and social work services. Treatment is undertaken in a variety of settings, with very few in-patient and day cases. Most treatments are carried out in hospital and community health settings on an out-patient basis. Information on waiting times for out-patient attendances is available only at specialty level and does not identify specific conditions or treatments.

Eating Disorders

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it plans to take to increase the number of specialist hospital beds in the Grampian NHS Board area for the treatment of life-threatening forms of anorexia nervosa.

Malcolm Chisholm: People suffering from anorexia nervosa are treated and supported through mainstream mental health and social work services. Treatment is undertaken mainly in out-patient settings, with very few in-patient and day cases. It is for NHS Grampian to assess the need for facilities and services to treat anorexia nervosa in the area it serves and to make the appropriate provision to meet this need.

Eating Disorders

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to address any disparities across Scotland in the availability of specialist services and community/family support for people suffering from anorexia nervosa.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Health Department published guidance in October 2001 on the organisation and provision of eating disorder services. It is for all NHS boards and their care partners to consider what provision best suits the assessed needs of their area, in collaboration with neighbouring boards where appropriate. Services are in place in Grampian, Highland, Lanarkshire and Lothian which range from specialist eating disorder teams to single nurse specialist posts.

  The performance and accountability arrangements for NHSScotland and the visiting Mental Health and Well Being Support Group keep these matters under review.

  The guidance is available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 23704).

Economy

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what revisions it made to gross domestic product figures in each of the last five years and whether it will give an explanation for the cause of each revision.

Iain Gray: The following table lists the first published estimate of annual GDP for each year since 1997 and the most recent estimate.

  Scottish Gross Domestic Product (1995=100%)

  


 


First Published Estimate 
  

Most Recently Published Estimate (August 
  2002) 
  



1997 
  

104.9 
  

105.4 
  



1998 
  

107.3 
  

107.4 
  



1999 
  

110.7 
  

109.7 
  



2000 
  

111.4 
  

111.7 
  



2001 
  

111.3 
  

112.6 
  



  Source: Scottish Executive.

  The estimates for each year published in August 2002 have been revised since each of the annual figures were first published. This happened for a number of reasons; the provision of updated and previously omitted data by data suppliers, the availability of annual results which feed into the analysis, improvements to the GDP methodologies and improved data sources, and revisions to data submitted by individual companies and organisations. The Executive takes the view that it is extremely important to use the most up-to-date data available at the time of publication.

  The revision policy for Scottish GDP is that all estimates affected by data revisions should be updated at the earliest opportunity. This allows those using the data for long-term analysis to have a consistent long-term series.

Economy

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what revisions it made to the main sectoral gross domestic product figures in each of the last five years and whether it will give an explanation for the cause of each revision.

Iain Gray: The following table lists the first published estimate of annual GDP for each year since 1997 and the most recent estimate.

  Scottish GDP by Main Industrial Sector (1995=100%)

  

 

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 
  

Production 
  

Construction 
  

Services 
  



First published estimate 
  

Most recently published estimate (August 
  2002) 
  

First published estimate 
  

Most recently published estimate (August 
  2002) 
  

First published estimate 
  

Most recently published estimate (August 
  2002) 
  

First published estimate 
  

Most recently published estimate (August 
  2002) 
  



1997 
  

92.3 
  

95.7 
  

108.6 
  

108.8 
  

101.1 
  

101.1 
  

104.8 
  

104.8 
  



1998 
  

94.3 
  

97.5 
  

111.5 
  

111.5 
  

98.3 
  

98.3 
  

107.6 
  

107.0 
  



1999 
  

95.1 
  

99.0 
  

114.7 
  

115.3 
  

100.8 
  

101.6 
  

111.3 
  

108.6 
  



2000 
  

95.8 
  

99.5 
  

115.1 
  

115.7 
  

107.4 
  

109.3 
  

111.5 
  

110.8 
  



2001 
  

97.0 
  

101.2 
  

106.7 
  

106.4 
  

106.6 
  

106.3 
  

114.7 
  

116.5 
  



  Source: Scottish Executive.

  The estimates for each year published in August 2002 have been revised since each of the annual figures were first published. This happened for a number of reasons; the provision of updated and previously omitted data by data suppliers; the availability of annual results which feed into the analysis; improvements to the GDP methodologies and improved data sources, and revisions to data submitted by individual companies and organisations. The Executive takes the view that it is extremely important to use the most up-to-date data available at the time of publication.

  The revision policy for Scottish GDP is that all estimates affected by data revisions should be updated at the earliest opportunity. This allows those using the data for long-term analysis to have a consistent long-term series.

Economy

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the gross domestic product per capita was in (a) cash and (b) real terms in each year for which figures are available.

Iain Gray: The following table gives Scottish Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita in cash terms for each year from 1989 to 1999, the years for which consistent data are available. Scottish GDP per capita is not available in constant prices.

  Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Per Capita 1989-99

  


Year 
  

GDP Per Capita (£) 
  



1989 
  

7,544 
  



1990 
  

8,321 
  



1991 
  

8,814 
  



1992 
  

9,217 
  



1993 
  

9,614 
  



1994 
  

10,168 
  



1995 
  

10,818 
  



1996 
  

11,162 
  



1997 
  

11,429 
  



1998 
  

12,117 
  



1999 
  

12,512 
  



  Source: Office for National Statistics.

Economy

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the gross domestic product (GDP) per capita growth figures were in (a) cash and (b) real terms in each year for which figures are available, specifying the contribution to the growth rate made by changes in (i) overall GDP and (ii) population levels.

Iain Gray: The following table gives Scottish GDP per capita growth figures, in cash terms, and also the changes to total GDP and population levels over the period from 1990 to 1999, the years for which consistent data are available. Scottish GDP per capita is not available in constant prices.

  Annual Percentage Changes in GDP Per Capita, Total GDP and Population Levels 1990-99

  


 


GDP Per Capita (%) 
  

Total GDP (%) 
  

Population1 (%) 
  



1990 
  

10.3 
  

10.4 
  

0.1 
  



1991 
  

5.9 
  

6.2 
  

0.1 
  



1992 
  

4.6 
  

4.6 
  

0.1 
  



1993 
  

4.3 
  

4.5 
  

0.2 
  



1994 
  

5.8 
  

6.0 
  

0.2 
  



1995 
  

6.4 
  

6.5 
  

0.1 
  



1996 
  

3.2 
  

3.0 
  

-0.2 
  



1997 
  

2.4 
  

2.3 
  

-0.1 
  



1998 
  

6.0 
  

6.0 
  

-0.1 
  



1999 
  

3.3 
  

3.0 
  

-0.1 
  



  Source: Office for National Statistics.

  Note:

  1. General Register Office for Scotland.

Enterprise

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what effect an increase in insurance premiums will have upon (a) the economy and (b) jobs and what representations it has made to the Chancellor of the Exchequer on this issue.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Executive is aware of the concerns being expressed by business about the potential impact of increased insurance premiums, and we are already in contact with the UK Government on this issue.

Environment

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-25761 by Ross Finnie on 20 May 2002, for which pesticides imported seeds are tested; by whom such testing is carried out, and whether it will provide a list of the maximum permitted residue level in respect of each such pesticide.

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-25762 by Ross Finnie on 21 May 2002, on how many occasions in each of the last three years pesticide residue in excess of the maximum permitted levels has been found in imported seeds and what the (a) level and (b) type of pesticide was in each case.

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-25759 by Ross Finnie on 21 May 2002, which agencies are responsible for the monitoring of pesticides in imported seeds.

Ross Finnie: The UK Pesticides Residues Committee carries out monitoring of both home-produced and imported food (including imported seed which is used as part of other food products e.g. bread) for pesticide residues. I am advised by the Food Standards Agency that it is represented on the committee and provides input to the design of the monitoring programme. Some 4,000 food samples are analysed each year for a wide range of pesticides. The full results of monitoring by the Pesticides Residues Committee, both quarterly and annual reports, are available on its website.

  Imported seed which is not intended for eating, but for sowing, may purposefully be treated with pesticides for plant protection reasons.

Harbours

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the cost to harbours of bacteria-related corrosion and what action it is taking to address this issue.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive has been aware of the growing concerns about bacteria-related corrosion (also referred to as Accelerated Low Water Corrosion) for some time and has been working with harbour authorities to address these concerns. The Scottish Executive has made no assessment of the cost of such damage. In the first instance, it is for harbour authorities to monitor their own structures and consider what action they require to take.

Holyrood Project

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to monitor air quality levels in Holyrood Park as a result of traffic flow changes brought about by the building of the Parliament.

Allan Wilson: All local authorities in Scotland have a duty under the Environment Act 1995 to review and assess air quality in their areas against the air quality objectives contained in the Air Quality Strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland . If this exercise shows that any of the objectives is unlikely to be met by the required dates, the authority must take steps to work towards the objectives concerned by declaring an Air Quality Management Area and drawing up an air quality action plan.

  Part of the review and assessment process is to identify potential pollution hotspots and to undertake any further monitoring or other work considered necessary. Therefore it is for the City of Edinburgh Council to decide on the requirements for monitoring air quality in Holyrood Park. To date, the council has not identified any problems with air quality in the area. However, the situation will be kept under review as part of on-going local air quality management.

Individual Learning Accounts

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many learning providers were recipients of Individual Learning Account (ILA) payments in each year since the scheme was introduced and how much each provider was paid.

Iain Gray: Account information held on learning providers participating in the scheme is commercially sensitive. It would, therefore, be inappropriate to provide financial details in respect of each individual learning provider.

  According to the ILA Centre's records, the amounts paid to learning providers are as follows:

  in the first financial year of the national scheme's introduction 410 learning providers received a total of £1,890,270;

  in the second financial year of the scheme's introduction 1,023 learning providers received a total of £10,976,725, and

  in the first six months of this financial year 284 learning providers received a total of £1,727,789.

  A table giving a more detailed breakdown of payments made to learning providers is included.

  Number of Learning Providers Receiving Payments in each Specified Payment Band (£)

  


Year 
  


0-9,999 




10,000-49,999 




50,000-99,999 




Over 100,000 




Totals 





2000-01 
  

359 
  

48 
  

1 
  

2 
  

410 
  



2001-02 
  

835 
  

139 
  

26 
  

23 
  

1,023 
  



2002-03 
  

241 
  

39 
  

2 
  

2 
  

284

Justice

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it will give to weighting the discretion of the criminal courts in determining applications for admission to bail in respect of accused persons who have been charged with an offence likely to result in imprisonment on subsequent convictions.

Mr Jim Wallace: We are currently in the process of reviewing the powers introduced in 1996 enabling the courts to impose aggravated sentences for offences committed while the offender was on bail. This review was announced in April 2000. To inform the review two research projects were planned. The first has been completed and the second is now under way. These will inform the later stages of the review which we aim to complete by the middle of 2003. While the research is under way it would be premature to draw any conclusions about the effectiveness of the new powers and what additional measures, if any, may be required.

  We have also noted the proposal in the UK Government’s recently published white paper Justice for All to weight the court’s discretion against granting bail to a defendant who has been charged with an imprisonable offence committed while on bail for another offence. We shall follow developments relating to that particular proposal with interest.

Justice

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it will give to extending the right of the prosecution to appeal against the admission to bail of an accused person.

Mr Jim Wallace: The prosecutor in Scotland already has an unrestricted right of appeal against the grant of bail to an accused person.

Justice

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has available to it on the incidence of (a) a failure to appear or be represented at court amongst accused persons admitted to bail, (b) offending by accused persons while admitted to bail and (c) intimidation of witnesses by accused persons while admitted to bail.

Mrs Elish Angiolini: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Justice

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are any plans for transcripts of criminal and civil court cases to be made available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre or the National Library to assist MSPs in their parliamentary and constituency business.

Mr Jim Wallace: There are currently no plans for transcripts of criminal and civil court cases to be made available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre or the National Library.

Justice

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to promote the development of community legal services.

Mr Jim Wallace: On 22 May, I announced a practical programme of development work to take forward the recommendations of the Review of Legal Information and Advice Provision in Scotland published last November. That programme includes the creation of four pilot partnerships, in different locations across the country, to look at local advice needs and service provision; a national needs assessment exercise; a review of the Scottish Legal Aid Board’s advice and assistance scheme, and a review of innovative service delivery mechanisms. Work is in hand on all of these. The programme will provide the information the Executive needs to take a more strategic approach to legal advice and information, with the ultimate aim of improving access to justice by creating a more joined-up, quality-assured and user-friendly network of advice, information and help across the country.

Livestock

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what input affected interests will have before any regulations on the arrangements for the transportation of cattle and, in particular, the use of slatted courts as cattle housing, are brought into force.

Ross Finnie: Consultation with interested parties will be undertaken before any regulations on the arrangement for the transport of cattle or changes to the regulations on cattle housing are brought into force.

Local Government Elections

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will make an announcement about its policy regarding proportional representation for local government elections.

Mr Andy Kerr: We have today placed both in the Parliament’s Reference Centre and on the Executive’s website a summary of responses to the issues raised in the consultation on the White Paper Renewing Local Democracy: the Next Steps .

  In relation to the electoral system, responses to the consultation showed a significant majority in favour of the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system. In line with the Executive’s commitment to making progress on electoral reform, we have decided to prepare a Local Governance Bill that will include STV as the alternative choice to First Past the Post electoral system. We intend to publish the bill before the end of the parliamentary session and it would be then available for decision by the new Executive following the May 2003 elections. We will announce our intentions on the other issues included in the white paper to Parliament in due course.

Local Government Finance

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to alter the system for making local authority capital funding allocations and, in particular, whether the fixed award of £1 million is a sufficient recognition of a local authority’s base expenditure need.

Peter Peacock: Capital allocations for the period 2001-02 to 2003-04 based on the existing capital formula were announced following Spending Review 2000. Local authorities have set their spending plans on the basis of these allocations and there are no plans to change these.

  The fixed element of the formula is set at a level commensurate with the overall resources available for local authority capital expenditure. The main factors that determine an authority's (relative) expenditure needs are included in the variable elements of the formula.

  We have announced plans to reform the local authority capital finance system. Subject to the passage of the Local Government Bill, local authorities will be able to determine their own capital spending plans from 1 April 2004. Proposals for supporting capital expenditure from 2004-05 will be discussed with COSLA.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many psychiatrists working in the field of adult psychiatry there have been in each of the last 10 years, broken down by (a) NHS board and (b) local authority area.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: The following table shows consultant psychiatrists (whole-time equivalents) by NHS board for "adult psychiatric specialities" (which is taken to be all consultant psychiatrists less those registered under Child and Adolescent Psychiatry). The figures shown may not reflect directly the availability of consultant psychiatric services in any individual NHS board area, because in many instances doctors employed in one NHS board area will also provide service in another.

  Data is not collected centrally on consultants by local authority area.

  Consultants Working in Adult Psychiatric Specialties*

  

 
 1990 
 1991 
 1992 
 1993 
 1994 
 1995 
 1996 
 1997 
 1998 
 1999 
 2000 
 2001 


 Argyll and Clyde 
 21.3 
 21.1 
 21.7 
 21.7 
 16.8 
 19.3 
 19 
 23.2 
 25.6 
 25.4 
 27.5 
 28.8 


 Ayrshire and Arran 
 11 
 10 
 9 
 8 
 8 
 7 
 8 
 9.7 
 11.7 
 13.5 
 18.5 
 17.5 


 Borders 
 4 
 4 
 4 
 4 
 4 
 4.7 
 5.2 
 5.2 
 5.2 
 6.2 
 6.2 
 6.2 


 Dumfries and Galloway 
 8.8 
 7.9 
 8 
 7 
 6.9 
 6.5 
 6.5 
 7.6 
 7.5 
 8.5 
 7.5 
 7.5 


 Fife 
 14 
 14 
 13 
 12 
 14 
 14 
 10.6 
 11.2 
 13.3 
 14.5 
 15.9 
 18 


 Forth Valley 
 10 
 10 
 9 
 10 
 10.4 
 10.8 
 12.8 
 14.3 
 16.4 
 15.9 
 14.9 
 15.5 


 Grampian 
 23.3 
 24 
 25.2 
 27.8 
 28.3 
 26.3 
 29.8 
 30.4 
 31.9 
 34.6 
 34.5 
 35.6 


 Greater Glasgow 
 54.7 
 52.5 
 50.2 
 49.8 
 53.2 
 61.2 
 56.9 
 59.6 
 61 
 60.3 
 61.2 
 65.4 


 Highland 
 9 
 9.2 
 9.2 
 9 
 9 
 9 
 7.5 
 9.5 
 9.5 
 10.5 
 10.5 
 104 


 Lanark-shire 
 15 
 15 
 16 
 15 
 13.5 
 13.1 
 13 
 16 
 16.6 
 22.4 
 21.9 
 22.9 


 Lothian 
 40.5 
 37.2 
 38.2 
 37.9 
 38.7 
 41.5 
 42.5 
 45 
 42.5 
 45.4 
 47.5 
 55.7 


 Orkney 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


 Shetland 
 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 
 


 Tayside 
 19.8 
 20 
 22 
 22 
 21.2 
 21.8 
 22.9 
 22.8 
 26 
 26.3 
 27 
 30.1 


 Western Isles 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 1 
 2 
 2 
 2 
 2 


 State Hospital Carstairs 
 
 3.7 
 3.2 
 3.6 
 6 
 6 
 6 
 6 
 6 
 6 
 7 
 7 


 Scotland 
 233.5 
 231.7 
 230.6 
 229.7 
 232.1 
 244.2 
 243.7 
 263.6 
 277.5 
 293.8 
 306.1 
 327.1 



  Source: Medical and Dental Census, ISD Scotland.

  *Adult psychiatry specialties are: Forensic Psychiatry, General Psychiatry, Psychiatry of Learning Disability, Old Age Psychiatry, and Psychotherapy.

  Notes:

  1. 2001 figures are provisional.

  2. Includes honorary appointments and excludes Directors of Public Health Medicine and Unit Medical Officers.

  3. Maximum part-time contracts are counted as 1.0 WTE. Scotland figures also include the Common Services Agency and other special health boards.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many social workers working solely in the field of mental health there have been in each of the last 10 years, broken down by (a) NHS board and (b) local authority area.

Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not held centrally.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will give a detailed breakdown of the availability of community care services in each (a) NHS board and (b) local authority area since the introduction of community care for people with mental illness.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: It is the responsibility of local authorities and health boards to assess local needs for mental health services, and to make appropriate provision. Information about services provided by these authorities is available within community care plans, which are a matter of public record.

Mental Health

Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many patients with a mental illness have been inappropriately detained under section 18 of the Mental Health (Scotland) 1984 Act in each year since 1990, broken down by NHS board area.

Mrs Mary Mulligan: This information is not collected centrally in the form requested.

  The Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland publishes, in its annual reports, information on requests for discharge from detention. In 2000-01, the commission reviewed the cases of 233 patients detained under section 18 of the Mental Health (Scotland) Act 1984 and discharged, contrary to the wishes of the Responsible Medical Officer, three patients (two of whom were on leave of absence).

Police

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-913 and S1W-27621 by Mr Jim Wallace on 26 August 1999 and 12 August 2002 respectively, why it was possible to give an answer to S1W-913 but not to S1W-27621.

Mr Jim Wallace: Decisions on police officer ill-health retirements are the responsibility of the employing authorities and information on the reason for police officer ill-health retirements is not routinely collected or held by the Scottish Executive. In response to question S1W-913, the information was sought specially from individual police forces. However, the Executive does not normally seek information specifically from third parties for the purpose of answering parliamentary questions. This is in keeping with the Executive’s current Guidance on Scottish Parliamentary Questions , a copy of which has been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre, and was the approach taken in replying to question S1W-27621.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-21191 and S1W-27656 by Mr Jim Wallace on 14 January 2002 and 15 August 2002 respectively, how it monitors contract compliance by Medacs in prisons.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  Medacs’ performance against the contract is monitored at both individual health centre level and by regular meetings of the national Medical Services Contract Monitoring Group.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27656 by Mr Jim Wallace on 15 August 2002, how it monitors compliance with Standards for the Health Care of Prisoners in all prisons including HM Prison Kilmarnock.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-26897 on 3 July 2002. All answers to written PQs are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search. In relation to HM Prison Kilmarnock the operator of the prison is monitored on a daily basis by the SPS Controllers.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-21191 and S1W-27656 by Mr Jim Wallace on 14 January 2002 and 15 August 2002 respectively, which targets in Standards of Health Care of Prisoners were not met by Medacs in each of the last three years or in as many years as such information is available.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-27656. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27739 by Mr Jim Wallace on 15 August 2002, why the Scottish Prison Service risk register is confidential.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  Because it contains sensitive material in that it identifies security, operational, corporate and business continuity risks relating to SPS’s law enforcement responsibilities. Such material requires to be treated in a confidential manner so as not to increase the risks which the register is designed to help reduce.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27739 by Mr Jim Wallace on 15 August 2002, whether it will publish or make available to the Scottish Parliament Information Centre parts of the Scottish Prison Service Risk Register where such release would not compromise prison security.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to respond. His response is as follows:

  The Scottish Prison Service Risk Register contains sensitive material relating to SPS’s law enforcement responsibilities. Such material requires to be treated in a confidential manner. Publishing all or part of the register would increases the possibility of risks materialising which would in itself pose an additional threat to the safe and secure operation and good governance of the prison system.

Prison Service

Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost of providing prisoner escorts has been to the Scottish Prison Service in each of the last three years, broken down by prison.

Mr Jim Wallace: I have asked Tony Cameron, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service to respond. His response is as follows:

  The information requested is not currently available. Arrangements for the collection and analysis of relevant data are being undertaken as part of the preparation for privatising these.

Racism

Mr Michael McMahon (Hamilton North and Bellshill) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will fulfil its commitment to conduct an anti-racism campaign.

Ms Margaret Curran: The Scottish Executive is launching an anti racism campaign today. The campaign, under the theme of "One Scotland. Many Cultures", has been developed in conjunction with the Commission for Racial Equality. The campaign is built on a solid foundation of race equality work and is further supported by an interactive website (www.onescotland.com). I am also placing the campaign details in the Parliament’s Reference Centre.

Rail Network

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-27360 by Lewis Macdonald on 8 August 2002, what plans it has to progress further electrification of the rail network.

Lewis Macdonald: The Scottish Executive has no current plans for further electrification of the rail network in Scotland.

Rail Services

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how it monitors efficiency in the running of rail services currently operated by ScotRail.

Lewis Macdonald: Responsibility for measuring the performance of all train operating companies in Great Britain, including ScotRail, rests with the Strategic Rail Authority.

Residential Care

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-28074 by Mr Frank McAveety on 26 August 2002, whether it has any plans, in line with the practice of the Secretary of State for Health, to review its recently introduced regulations on the size of rooms and other matters in residential care facilities.

Mr Frank McAveety: The statutory requirements on care services are set out in The Regulation of Care (Requirements as to Care Services) (Scotland) Regulations 2002. The Executive has no current plans to review these regulations.

  The requirements relating to the size of rooms are set out in the national care standards for care homes published by ministers. These standards were widely consulted on and underpin our aim of improving the quality of the care experience for the user. Responsibility for monitoring compliance with the standards lies with the Scottish Commission for the Regulation of Care.

Road Accidents

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average cost to the NHS is of a road fatality.

Lewis Macdonald: Information about estimated road accident costs are published annually in Road Accidents Scotland. Table 12 of Road Accidents Scotland 2000, copies of which are available in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 17733), contains a breakdown of costs per accident by element of cost and severity for the UK at 2000 prices.

School Meals

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to ensure that education authorities and schools are adopting the nutrient standards for school lunches as recommended in Hungry for success, A Whole School Approach To School Meals In Scotland , the Interim Report of the Expert Panel on School Meals.

Nicol Stephen: The proposed nutrient standards are one of a number of recommendations in the Expert Panel’s interim report which is currently out for consultation. We will consider what action to take once we receive the panel’s final report later this year.

School Meals

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to ensure that education authorities are introducing a school meals application for multiple use cards in secondary schools as recommended in Hungry for success, A Whole School Approach To School Meals In Scotland , the Interim Report of the Expert Panel on School Meals.

Nicol Stephen: The Minister for Finance and Public Services announced on 24 May support of £5.4 million to a consortium of local authorities led by COSLA to develop services to young people in the 12-18 age group, alongside the development of a young persons smartcard. The smartcard development will explore a range of applications including school meals and cashless vending. We look forward to receiving the consortia's final project plan by 30 September. This Modernising Government Fund two proposal builds on the pilot project in two Aberdeen City schools supported by the first round of the Modernising Government Fund.

  The proposal to introduce a school meals application for multiple use cards in secondary schools is one of a number of recommendations in the panel’s interim report currently out for consultation. We expect the panel’s final report later this year.

Scottish Executive Finance

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what impact a reduction of 2% in the current interest rates would have on its finances.

Mr Andy Kerr: There is likely to be a limited impact on the Executive’s finances through loan charge support to local authorities. A reduction in interest rates would influence the calculation of loan charge support for local authorities. The impact of a reduction in interest rates on the calculation of loan charges is limited as the calculation also takes account of interest rates on historic debt. In addition we would not recalculate loan support within the fixed three-year local government settlement period.

Scottish Natural Heritage

Fiona McLeod (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive under what circumstances Scottish Natural Heritage would be expected to undertake environmental impact studies in respect of planning applications in sensitive areas.

Hugh Henry: There are statutory requirements for planning authorities or developers to consult Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) on proposals in, or affecting, certain areas designated for their natural heritage interest, when such proposals are the subject of planning applications, or in some cases as a pre-requisite of exercising permitted development rights. It is for SNH to decide in the circumstances of each case what work they require to carry out in order to respond to such consultations.

Scottish Executive Ministers

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much time the Deputy Minister for Justice has spent on ministerial duties in each of the last three months.

Mr Jack McConnell: It is entirely the responsibility of each minister and deputy minister to apportion the time he or she spends on ministerial and constituency duties.

Tourism

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any financial assistance has been provided by VisitScotland to promote the Loch Ness Marathon on 29 September 2002; whether any recommendation was made that VisitScotland should finance the marketing costs of the marathon; what response was made by VisitScotland to any such recommendation, and whether any assistance has been provided to promote the marketing of the marathon by VisitScotland

Mike Watson: This is an operational matter for VisitScotland.

Transport

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which local authorities benefit from a special allowance for rural and island transport needs under their capital funding allocations and how much was paid to each such local authority in each of the last five years.

Peter Peacock: The single allocation formula contains special allowances to recognise the special transport circumstance of remote/rural areas. A top-slice (10%) of the roads and transport element of the formula is distributed to island authorities or those authorities containing large island areas to reflect the needs in relation to ferry services, and to rural local authorities to reflect increased needs for bridge strengthening and forest roads. The amount for special transport needs is built into the authority's unhypothecated single allocation. It is not specifically identified for special transport needs. It is entirely up to the local authorities to determine how they spend their allocation across the range of their capital programmes (excluding council housing).

  The top slice is distributed as follows:

  


Council 
  

Percentage 
  



Argyll and Bute 
  

1.25 
  



Dumfries and Galloway 
  

 1.5 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

2.75 
  



Highland 
  

 3.0 
  



Orkney 
  

 0.5 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

 1.0 
  



Total 
  

10.0

Transport

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the formula for calculating the special allowance for rural and island transport needs gives sufficient recognition of the costs of providing transport services in these areas and what plans it has to increase the allowance for rural and island local authorities in future years or to review the funding formula.

Peter Peacock: The single capital allocation formula measures the relative need to spend of each local authority based on statistical indicators for the main capital programmes (excluding council-owned housing) and the total resources made available for local authority capital spending. It is up to each local authority how it spends its total capital resources including any locally-raised resources for example the proceeds of asset sales. There are no plans to review the special transport needs element of the formula.

  Rural and islands authorities also benefit from revenue grant from the Rural Transport Fund and have received additional capital allocations from the Public Transport Fund. The final round of such allocations will be made in October. Future arrangements for supporting local transport infrastructure projects will be announced in the autumn.

Vaccines

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will introduce a single vaccine programme for (a) measles, (b) mumps and (c) rubella and whether the introduction of such a programme would increase confidence amongst parents in its policy on this issue.

Malcolm Chisholm: As stated in the answers given to questions S1W-25472 on 30 April 2002 and S1W-25524 on 15 May 2002, expert medical advice confirms that MMR remains the safest and most effective way to protect children from measles, mumps and rubella. This view was supported by the conclusions of the MMR Expert Group report, published in April 2002.

  The Executive therefore has no plans to change the current immunisation programme and, on the basis of best clinical practice, will continue to offer MMR to protect children against these three serious diseases.

  Uptake rates for the childhood immunisation programme to quarter ended June 2002, as published by the Information and Statistics Division (ISD) of the Common Services Agency (CSA), reflect another rise in MMR uptake. The figure of 88.6% to end June 2002 reflects the highest uptake since March 2001.

Waste Management

Mr Andrew Welsh (Angus) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many tonnes of waste produced by schools was sent to landfill in each year since 1997, broken down by local authority area.

Ross Finnie: The information requested is not held centrally. Waste from many schools is collected by local authorities and may not be measured separately.

Waste Management

Mr Andrew Welsh (Angus) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what requirements there are on schools to recycle waste.

Ross Finnie: There is no specific requirement. However, the Scottish Executive has set an overall target to recycle or compost 25% of waste collected by Scottish local authorities, which will include waste from many schools by 2006. This will be achieved through the implementation of the Area Waste Plans. The Executive plans to take powers to set mandatory recycling and other waste management targets under the Local Government Bill.

Water Safety

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether sheep currently graze in close proximity or adjacent to the reservoirs, rivers and lochs providing the water supply to Edinburgh and adjacent communities and, if so, how many and whether it is its intention to have them removed and, if so, when; if no sheep are grazing, when they were removed and what investigations have been carried out and what information is available regarding any effect relating to public health that the presence of the sheep may have had, or has, on the water supply.

Ross Finnie: As with the majority of water supply catchment areas in Scotland, there are sheep on the catchments for the Edinburgh water supply reservoirs. These catchments are privately owned and Scottish Water cannot control sheep farming activities carried under good agricultural practice. In this respect, Scottish Water does not have information on the numbers of sheep on the catchment and would not seek to have them removed. Scottish Water does, however, have a good working relationship with landowners and farmers in these areas.

  The storage of water in reservoirs is only one part of the water supply cycle and the treatment process is the principle line of defence in safeguarding public health. All of the water treatment works that supply Edinburgh have the necessary filters to remove particulate material. There is no evidence that the presence of sheep on the catchment areas has had any adverse effect on public health.